Jim & Barbara Burton Travel: Alice Springs

Alice Springs, NT

We arrived in Alice Springs at lunchtime on Sunday. It was hot and dry but not oppressive. We were greeted by a multitude of small flies all after moisture that they could derive from any part of your body that was exposed to the elements, eyes, nose, mouth etc. We took the airport shuttle to our hotel and checked in. After settling in we strolled around the immediate vicinity but as it was Sunday it was very quiet and very little open. We did however visit a small local gallery called Jila, which supports aboriginal artists. The painters that they represent paint mostly of the Dreamtime. Dreamtime is the ancient folklore of the Aboriginal People. We were quite taken with the art of Vanessa Inkamala who paints Dreamtime and depicts the flora that appears in the desert after the rain.

Monday, after breakfast, we strolled along the Todd Mall, an outdoor precinct with mostly Art Galleries, Saddleries, craft shops, restaurants etc. After looking through other galleries we were drawn back to the gallery that we had visited the day before and subsequently purchased some of Vanessa’s work. The gallery has a studio in Alice where some of the artists go to paint and we were lucky to be invited to see them at work. This is a rare privilege and a rarer privilege to be allowed to photograph them. We met Linda and her husband Russell an ex dentist from Melbourne, another gentlemen of eighty-seven and Eddie who hails from the top end of Australia and paints very differently from the Dreamtime. Russell met Linda when he volunteered his services to the indigenous communities around Alice. Apparently he took one look at Linda, fell hopelessly in love with her and has not left her side since, a span of twenty plus years. Linda is seventy and not very communicative but Russell is more than happy to tell the tales of Linda’s paintings. Unfortunately, if he gets something wrong it doesn’t go unnoticed by Linda and she lets him know in no uncertain terms. Eddie is very different from the Aboriginals that reside around Alice, both in looks and demeanour.

After we left the studio we were kindly driven, by Kim from the gallery, to the Olive Pink Botanical Gardens. These gardens were obviously desert gardens with plants, bushes, grasses and trees that are very different from anything else we had seen. It was very hot and unbelievably quiet. All of a sudden we felt a presence and there watching us were some Hill Kangaroos (Euros). They are very shy but very inquisitive and also very beautiful. Check out those lovely ears. There was also an impressive bird-attracting garden as you can see by the photo it worked very well.

Departing the gardens we walked back to our hotel via the massive Todd River. The Todd River like so many in this part of Australia is totally dry only sporting water a few times a year. When it rains here it is usually monsoon like and the river can rise 2 metres (almost seven feet) in just a few hours. Each year in August they stage the Todd River Henley Regatta. Hundreds of boats compete but unlike most regattas the boats have no bottoms and the rowers hold onto the sides and run. A few years ago the river flooded on the day of the race and it had to be cancelled. They have other bizarre races here too, including Camel Races where the handlers release them and they take off, riderless, around the track. Maybe it is too much sun!!!!!!!!!!! At least they know how to make the most of a very desolate part of the world. It is all about FUN!!!! Also on our return we visited a lovely museum/gallery with some amazing indigenous art and craftwork.

Our last full day in a “Town called Alice” was an adventure into the West MacDonnells, one of the mountain ranges here. It was a very hot day and we had a lot of new friends accompany us on our journey. In fact they told their friends, who in turn told their friends and so on and so on. Who knows some of them may have even come from the airport. They kept buzzing in our ears, up our noses, the corners of our eyes and any other annoying places they could find. Our first stop was at the Memorial Rock of Reverend John Flynn, Superintendant of the Australian Inland Mission but possibly more importantly he started the Flying Doctor Service. This service was originally operated by a little company that had recently started in business, known as Queensland and Northern Territories Air Service, now known as QANTAS!!!! Simpsons Gap was our next stop and was quite magnificent with the reflections of the rocks in the water. We were also extremely lucky to see black footed rock wallabies that are very difficult to see in the rocks due to their camouflage. You can only pick them out when they move. The river at Simpson’s Gap has no water in it, but there is a sign stating no swimming. “Alice Humour” perhaps?.

Standley Chasm came next and we were lucky to find just the right guide to show us the way. “Stan the dog”, aptly named, is an old hand at taking people through the chasm and also eats some of the fruits on the way, doing his bit for propagation. Then we travelled on to Ormiston Gorge, followed by lunch at the Glen Helen homestead and a stroll to the water hole before driving out to view the Finke River, which actually HAS water in it. We visited the sacred Ochre Pits where the Aboriginal People mine the ochre for body paint. Our last stop was Ellory Creek Big Hole, a permanent water hole where the brave can take a dip in the extremely cold water. It was quite an exhausting day but a memorable one. We arrived back at our hotel, had a quick shower and went for dinner as we had an early start the next morning. “Sporties”, on the mall, was an excellent choice and is very popular with the locals. The food, atmosphere and the price were all excellent. Time for bed and off to Uluru in the morning…………………